What does it take for you to opt in?

Today I have a question for all the readers out there. While I was browsing various ecommerce sites to shop for jeans, I noticed that many e-retailers are using a similar strategy. I’m sure you’ve seen it before. You arrive on a site to shop, and within a matter of seconds, the background dims and a little pop-up appears. Usually, it asks to you to subscribe to an email newsletter to receive some kind of deal or discount, and receive future offers. Do you opt in?

This light box is a really effective tool for brands to grow their email list. Since it pulls the shopper’s attention away from the products and right to that field where they enter their email address, it’s hard to ignore. Plus, offering an incentive like a percentage off their order or free shipping often entices people to sign up. Now, what I noticed while shopping for jeans is the variety in these light box pop-ups. It got me wondering which ones people prefer. Let’s take a look at a few examples.

First, check out this super simple pop-up from J Brand. This retailer doesn’t offer any discounts, they simply let shoppers know that they can have access to private sales and exclusive offers by signing up. All it takes is an email address. Personally, I might subscribe just because it’s so simple! Future offers with minimal effort. Easy peasy.

Next up, we have True Religion. This one has a bit more to unpack. First of all, this brand offers customers 10% off their next order, on top of the usual stuff like promotions, special events and new arrivals. That’s definitely pretty enticing. If I like the products, I would certainly want to use a discount on my next order. As for True Religion, they’ve just potentially snagged me as a return customer, which is very valuable. However, for this subscription, I have to fork over more information: my email, gender, and postal code. To me, the cost is probably worth the reward, but there’s certainly a bit more effort here.

Finally, take a look at the pop-up from Guess. This brand offers 15% off the first purchase, which is awesome for the shopper. I can sign up, check my email, and use that discount right away. However, look at how many fields I have to fill in to get this offer. They want my email address, name, zip code, gender and birthday. This is certainly the most time-consuming of all three examples. My theory is that Guess assumes people will want this deal enough to spend the time to sign up, and then they count on their marketing emails to entice the customer to return for future purchases. I’d be interested to know how well it works!

Which light box pop-up would you sign up for? What kind of a cost to reward ratio will convince you to give a retailer your information? Share your thoughts in the comments section!